Cow-milking machine.



C. K. SALISBURY.

COW MILKING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED Dic. I3. I9I5.

1', 1 98,774. Patented Sept. 19, 1916.

2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

wm I 75% C. K. SALISBURY.

COW MILKING MACHINE.

APPucANoN man 0m13.191s.

Patented Sept. 19, 1916.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

STATES Pa'rENT OFFICE.

CHARLES K. SALISBURY, OF M IINVAUKEE, WISCONSIN, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF T0 CHARLES E. SOMERS, 0F MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN.

COW-MILKING MACHINE.

lSpecification of Letters Patent.

Patented sept. 19, 1916.

To all idiom 'it 71mg/ concern Be it known that I. CHARLES K. SamsnUnY, a citizen of the United States. and resident of lllilwaukee, in the county ot` Milwaukee and State of 'isconsin, have iuvented new and useful Improvements in Co\\'l\Iilking Machines. of which the following is a description. reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which are a part of this specification.

This invention relates to cow milking machines of the type in which a milk chamber connected lwith a suction pump and with the teat cups is provided with an open. lower end which is automatically closed' b v a valve upon the beginning of the suction stroke of the pump, said valve being pivotally suspended within the milk chamber in such a manner as to normally hang iu a fully open position requiring onl'ya short movement to reach its closcdposition.

Another object of the invention to ,provide such a pivotally suspended valve with a plunger working loosel)y in the air pump connection somewhat in the manner of the construction shown in Patent No. 907,236 to Hinman. dated December NOS. However, on account of the weight of the valve being supported by its pivotal connection, and therefore requiring less force to move it -from one position to the other. the plunger of this invention is given such a loose fit in the pump connection that it maintains the same clearance from the walls of the pump connection in all positions thereof so that comiiuinication between the pump and the milk chamber is maintained at all times. the only obstruction in such communication being the plunger. and said obstruction remaining constant for all positions of the valve,

Another object of the invention is to provide such a valved milk chamber with a delicately balanced metal valve capable of quickly adjustingitself to the inclined valve seat to effect a tight closure instantly upon the beginning of the suction stroke of the pump.

Another object of the invention is to provide such a valved milk chamber with few parts of simple construction and easily disconnected for cleaning.

lVith the above Vand other objects in View the invention consists inY the cow milking machine as herein claimed and all equivalents.

cate the same parts in the different views, Figure 1 is a vertical sectional view of the cow milking machine of-this invention showing the valve in full lines in its open position and in dotted lines in its normal partly closed position: Fig. 2 is a similar view thereof also sectioning the pump connection and Showing the valve in full lines in its closed position and'in dotted lines in its open position: Fig. 3 thereof: Fig. i is a detail view'of the valve and its supporting meansLFig. 5 is a sectional view of the milk connection showing the guard for spreading the milk along' the walls of the milk chamber; Fig. Gis a sectional view of a modified form of the invention in which the valve is actuated by a cap fitting over the pump connection instead of b v means of a plunoer within the pump connection; and. Fig. 4 is a sectional view of a further modification in which the valve is not pivotally suspended, but is supported di-' rectly by the plunger in the pump connection.

In these drawings 10 indicates a cylindrical casing constituting' a milk chamber 'which is open at its lower end forming an inclined valve seat 11 and is otherwise closed except for a milk connection nipple 12 near its upper end and an lopening to receive a screw plug pump connection nipple 1S.

The milk connection nipple 12 is adapted to be connected b v a flexible hose with tent cups. and the pump connection 13 is adapted to be similarly connected with a suitably operated valveless reciprocating pump of any desirable construction. as .for example,

the construction shown in the Hinman Reissue Patent No. 13.876. dated February 9, 1915. The pump connection nipple 13 may be provided with wings 14 for readily turning it intox-or out of position, and passing freely through the opening referred to threads into a curved tubular pump connection extension 15 which is fixed on a split cylindrical lining 16 fitting within the upper end of the milk chamber. Ears AP'are 'cut from the lower edge of the lining 1G and are bent parallel to each other to form bearings through which a cotter pin 18 passes.,

is a sectional plan view y tween its edges and the walls thereof 'which y'xremains constant throughout the travel ot the plunger? by reason of the pump connec- A"tion, extension being curved on the pivotal 'axis ofthe valve lever as a center.

MThe lower end of theA valve lever 20 is bent at an angle and has a rectangular opening therethrough forming a socket -to loosely receive a somewhat smaller square lug or projection 22 on the upper surface of a disk- Shaped metal valve, 23. a cotter pin 2l pass- ,ing through the end of the projection 22 to loosely suspend the valve from the end of the valve lever. The valve .23 fits against the inclined valve seat 11 and the lug 22 is positioned slightly nearer the lower edge of the valve so that when the valve is free from the valve seat it has a tendency to swing on its connection with the valve lever with its `upper edge tartherfromll the pivot pin 1S than when in its closed position. The lower edge of the valve is the first to contact with the valve Aseat on swinging toward its closed position so thatthe valve takes a sliding pivotal movement on such contacting lower 'edge as a fulcrum with the result that it snaps shut against its seat with Van accelerated tiiial movement which is facilitated by the direct action of the suction upon the valve. This quick iinal closing motion of the `valve is further facilitated bythe pivotalconnection 18 ofthe valve lever being positioned back of the center of the valve whereby the travel of the end of the valve lever is slightly upwardly, thus tending to lift the valve as well as moving it horizontally toward the inclined valve seat. This quick closing' action of the valve at the very beginning ot the suction stroke of the pump is important as it enables ay greater portion of the suction stroke of the pump to be communicated to the that cups 'and permits of the establishment ofA such communication during the comparatively slow portion of the movement of the pump piston in its suction stroke, thus enabling the suction communicated to the teat cups upon the closing of the valve to begin moderate-ly and graduallyl increase in force as the speed of the pump piston increases, thus avoiding a sudden application of suction that would result from a delayed closing of the valve until the piston of the suction pump had acquired its maximum speed. f

jAt the end of the suction stroke of the pump the valve swings open under 'the Weight of the milk bearing upon it and under the action of the return of air under pressure from the pump, such pressure acts ing upon theplunger 21 and upon the valve direct to accomplish this purpose. To prei from the pump drawing the plunger 2 1 intoy the pump connection extension 15, and this movement is completed with the snap action before referred to to most Aeffectively seall the milk chamber and can'sevthe 'suction to be communicated through the milk chamber to the teat cups. The cylindrical lining 16 besides serving as a guidefor positioning the removable parts in the interior of the.

milk chamber further .serves as a milk spreader for deflecting 'the fiow'of'milk entering the milk chamber from Athe milk connection 12 so that Said flow of lnilk is spread along the walls of the milk chamber and isthus prevented from entering the" *pump connection.

rThis is accomplished by forming a depression or indentation J6 in the 'lining 16 where it covers the end of the milk connection 12, such depressioi'i opening downwardly and being contracted at its lower edge to cause the milk to flow down the walls of the milk chamber in a thin stream, f

The milk chamber 10 may be supported in any suitable manner within or above a receptacle such as an ordinary milking bucket, but it`is preferably provided with a flange 27 which may be permanently or removably connected with the milk pail I cover, ot which parts are shown in dotted lines.

Bv unscrewine the nun) connection ni ple 13 the valve supporting member 1G iS .released andthe valve and all interior parts` are removable from the milk chamber, permittingv of thorough cleaning thereof.

The plunger 21 with its loose tit in the arc-shaped pump connection extension 15 -serves as a inotoi' operated by the move-l ments of the pump piston for opening and closing the valve, the plunger occupying sullicient sectional area of the tube 15 to be sensitive to the currents of air therethrough in either direction so as to readily respond impart movement to the plunger for operating the valve the extent of such restriction is invariable, owing to the tube being arcshaped and concentric with the pivotal mounting of the plunger support.

In operation the reciprocations of the pump piston produce oscillations of thevalve lever by the action of the reversing currents of air on the plunger 21 and as soon as the valve is' closed the suction communicated to the milk chamber from the pump is transmitted to the teat cups to draw milk from the cows udder into the milk chamber throu h' the milk connection l2. During the i' 'urn stroke of the pump piston the return of air through the pump connection causes the valve vto'open and permit the milk to run from the milk chamber, .and these operations are repeated= It is obvious that the plunger may fit on the outside of the pump connection in the form of a cup-shaped cap instead of on the inside thereof, and, in Fig. (i this modification is shown, the plunger consisting of" a curved cup-shaped cap 2l covering the end of the pump connection extension 15', both vbeing curved concentrically with ,the pivotal axis' of the valve lever 2() so as to maintain invariable the clearance space between them.

A further modification is shown in Fig. 7, wherein the pivotal support for the valve is dispensed with and a valve 28 is carried on a central vertical rod 2S which is operated by a plunger 29 loose within the unvarying bore of a pump connection 3G con axial with the milk chamber 31. ln this construction, as in the others, the plunger haspa fixed clearance in its relation to the walls of the pump connection that does not Vary `in any position thereof and which is suflicient to maintain operative communlcation between the milk chamber and the pump at all times, though the plunger offers suficient obstruction to the [message of air through the pump connection to operato las a. motor for opening and closing the valve. In this construction it may be ad- Visable to provide the valve with upstanding guide posts 3Q to engage the inner walls 0f the milk chamber 31 to keep the valve centrally positioned, the valve seat ll being arranged to correspond with the position of the valve. In this construction also it may be advisable to provide a plvoted spring pressed dog 33 on the pump connec ltion 30 with its curved end passing through an opening in the pump connection to project beneath the plunger 29 and form a re- Vmovable stop in the, path thereof to limit its downward movement and thus retain the valve and plunger in their operatbe positions until it is desired to remove them for cleaning, when the stop may be removed by pressing the dog against the action of its spring. f

nection and a teat cup connection, al suit-- ably supported valve for closing the opening of the milk chamber, and a plunger connected with the valve and. having an operative. relation to the pump connection to receive movement from the current of air flowing therethrough for causing the opening andy ciosingbof the valve, the clearance between the plunger and the pump connection being constant in all positions of the plunger.

2. In a milking machine', a milk chamber having an open bottom and a pump connection and a teat cup connection, a valve for closing the opening of the milk chamber, and a plunger connected with the valve and fitting within the pump connection and having a fixed clearance from the walls thel'cotl througlrwhich communication between the milk chamber and the pump is maintained at all times, said plunger restricting the flow of air through the pump connection to a sufiicient extent to be moved therebyY for changing the positions of the valve.

$3. In a milking machine, a milk chamber having an open bottom and a pump connection and a te-at cup connection, a valve for closing the bottom opening of the milk chamber, a lever fulcrumed within the milk chamber and connected with the valve, and a plunger connected with the lever and po .sitioned within the pump connection.

4. In a milking machine, a milk chamber having an open bottom, a teat cu'p connection and a pump connection. a valve for closingthe bottom opening of the milk chamber, a suitably fulcrumed lever connected with the valve, and a plunger carried by the lever and located within the pump connection, said pump Vconnection being curved about the fulcrum of the lever as a center so that the travel of the plunger therein does not materially vary the clearance between them.

lever and located inside of the pump connection, said pump connection being curved about thefulcrum of the level' as a center.

6. In a milking machine, a milk chamber having an open bottom and a teatcup connection', a valve for closing the bottom opening of the milk chamber, a supporting member within the milk chamber. 'a pump connection nipple passing through the Wall of the milk chamber and engaging the supporting member to hold it in place, a pump connection tubular extension on the supporting member, a valve lever fulcrumed on the supporting member and supporting the valve, anda plunger on the valve lever col'ierating with the pump connection extension to receive motion from the currents of air passing therethrough for opening and closing the valve.

, 47. In a milking machine. a milk chamber having an open bottom and a teat cup connection. a valve for closing'the bottom opening of the milk chamber. a lining removably fitting within the milk chamber. a pump connection nipple passing through the wall of the milk chamber and engaging the lining to hold it in piace. a tubular pump connection extension on the lining communicating with the pump connection nipple. a lever fnlcrnmed on the lining and supporting the valve. and a plunger on the lever fitting within the pump connection extension-r the lining having a depression spaced from the walls of the milk chamber around the teat cup connection for spreading the flow of milk along the walls of the milk chamber.

8. In a milking machine. a milk chamber having an open bottom. a teat cup connection and a pump connection. a suitablyv operated lever fulcrnmed within the milk chamber, and a valve loosely mounted on the lever for closing the bottom opening ot' the milk chamber.

9. In a milking machine. a milk chamber having an open bottom and a teat cup coiinection and a pump connection. a valve for closing the bottoni opening of the milk chamber. a valve supporting means. and a loose connection between the valve suppor-tlever and the valve offset from the center ofy the valve. A

l1. In a milking machine. a milk chamber having an open bottom forming an inclined Vvalve seat and having a teat cup connection and a pump connection. a valve for closingr the valve seat. a lever fulcrnmed wtliin the milk chamber and having an angular opening in its end. an angular lug on the valve offset from the center of the valve toward the lower ledge of the valve and loosely lit= ting in the angular opening of the lever. and

means for holding the lug within the opening of the lever.

lf2. In a milking machine. a milk chamber v having an open bottom and a pump connection and a teat cup connection. a suitably supported valve for closing the bottom opening of the milk chamber, and a plunger connected with the valve and having an operi tive relation to the pump connection to receive movement from the current of air flowing therethrough for causing the opening and closing of the valve. there being a slippage of air past the plunger through a space constant in area in all positions of ythe plunger. In testimony whereof. I aflix my signa-1 ture. in presence of two witnesses.

CHARLES K. SALISBUR'Y. 'itnesses:

KATHERINE Hoi/r, R. S. C. CALDWELL. 

